4 Questions to Help Small Businesses Decide if Colocation is Their Best Option

Deciding how to structure the IT side of business is always difficult. This is especially true for small businesses because they have limited budgets and staff. There are several options at their disposal including colocation, managed colocation, and managed hosting. The key is knowing what questions to ask in order to identify the best solution. These 4 questions are designed to address the common variables every small business faces and discover if colocation is the best strategy.

1. Is the Small Business Willing to Relinquish Some Control over Facility Design

Colocation requires a small business to give up some control over the facility layout, design, and operating procedures. The benefit to keep in mind is the organization will receive access to a purpose-built data center and the advantages it provides. The problem is the small business must be able to accept some responsibilities will transfer from the business to the colocation provider. If the small business desires to maintain control over every aspect of the data center only an in-house solution is an option.

2. Does the Small Business have all of the Necessary Hardware

For a small business to utilize colocation they must have all of the hardware they need. If they do not have everything, they must be willing to purchase it. With colocation, only the space is being leased. Purchasing all of the equipment is the responsibility of the client. If the small business is not willing to make the necessary capital investment an option which allows them to rent the equipment is a better fit, such as managed hosting.

3. Will the Small Business Invest in Additional Hardware as It Grows?

With colocation, the small business supplies all of their own hardware. If the business is not willing to purchase additional hardware as it expands another option such as managed hosting is the permanent solution. If the small business currently owns all of the hardware it needs, colocation is still a possible solution until the additional hardware is needed. With the long-term savings colocation provides, most small businesses are able to purchase additional hardware in the future with only a marginal increase to the IT budget.

4. Is the Small Business Capable of Maintaining the Hardware?

To gain the maximum savings with colocation, the small business must be able to maintain their own hardware. Some colocation providers offer supplemental services, such as server maintenance. These services are commonly referred to as “Virtual Hands”. While this service does cover basic maintenance, the small business must still be willing to send IT personnel to the colocation facility when necessary.

When small businesses make the right decision early in their development, significant expenses can be avoided in the future. Making colocation a long-term solution does require a small business to follow certain guidelines. The small business must be willing to give up some control over the facility as well as purchase and maintain all of the hardware. In exchange, the small business gains all of the features and benefits associated with using purpose-built data center